Bucharest Mayor Frowns On Euthanizing Stray Dogs

Oprescu said he disagrees with euthanizing stray dogs, as he used to be a doctor before he was elected mayor.

Oprescu said procedures to spay stray dogs in Bucharest have just begun, adding that, no matter how hard he tries to speed the process, no more than 4,000 stray dogs can be spayed and neutered in a month.

The mayor also said he must observe the law, adding he will respect his promises regarding the construction of a shelter for dogs in Prahova county.

Bucharest Prefect Mihai Atanasoaei said Tuesday a draft law on stray dogs has been sent to Romania's Chamber of Deputies and provisions include the euthanizing of dogs that are aggressive, gravely ill or that are not adopted within seven days.

The prefect said that the proposals, which conform to EU legislation, are based on data collected during the past four years from local authorities and from the National Institute for Infectious Diseases Matei Bals. According to NGOs, there are nearly 40,000 stray dogs in Bucharest, while according to local authorities there are nearly 100,000.

In 2009, 7,571 people in Bucharest required medical attention because of stray dog bites. In the first quarter of 2010, 2,175 such cases were recorded. Medical treatment for the injured cost EUR400,000 in 2009, and approximately EUR1.3 million from 2006-2009.

Yearly maintenance for all stray dogs in Bucharest would cost an estimated EUR34 million, said the prefect of Bucharest.

The draft law states that people who want to adopt more than two dogs have to provide evidence that they can afford maintenance costs, approval from their neighbors or homeowners' association, and receipts proving that the animals have been neutered, have received medical care and have had tracking microchips implanted.

The draft law also states that stray dogs will be rounded up and selected. Gravely ill, aggressive dogs will be euthanized, while healthy, non-aggressive animals would be put up for adoption. Dogs who are not adopted within seven days can also be euthanized, said the prefect.

The new law would also make it mandatory for common-breed dog owners to have tracking microchips implanted on their animals, and to neuter or spay them.

Also, the amended law would enforce fines from RON1,000 to RON5,000 for people who adopt dogs and then release them on the street, people who feed stray dogs in public places, animal owners who fail to register their pets, and those who do not neuter or spay their common-breed dogs.

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